An Everlasting Terra Incognita
This body of work resulted from an experiment—what would be the result of making work that started with finding interesting pieces of wood in my neighborhood? The process of making each piece was left to chance, if I found something that piqued my interest I would take it home. If I didn't find anything, then that was what was meant to happen. I did not force the finding, or being found. When I found a piece I liked, I tried not to alter it in any way. These found branches and stumps, despite being cut and thrown away would be given a second life as sculpture. Using the found wood as a starting point, I created ceramic stoneware additions that responded to the wood.
The making was heavily process oriented and relational. Rather than beginning with an idea for the sculpture, I cultivated a practice of intuitive listening to the wood and clay and how they wanted to be in relationship with one another and to me. This process revealed the immensity of my own backyard—a place I thought I was familiar with, but which came to be an unknown land where new relationships could be found.
